Thoughts on Freaks and Geeks

I know I'm like, 10 years late on this, but have been recently engrossed in watching Freaks and Geeks, after having heard Judd Apatow's interview with Marc Maron (part 2 here) a couple of weeks ago. Here are some thoughts on it.

In the world of Freaks and Geeks, nothing is as it seems. Fronts are put on, emotions are hidden, waiting like dormant volcanos ready to explode any time. Both the "freaks" and the "geeks" are outsiders, but of different sorts -- the "freaks" are the older, grungier slackers who have given up on school, while the "geeks" are three nerdy freshmen, physically awkward, and wide-eyed. The setting is nondescript high school in suburban America, standing in as a supposed universal experience, a rite of passage. It's a cruel world, one filled with insults, dashed dreams, broken families, loneliness and despair. No wonder these characters need to construct these layers of defense, inhabiting characters in orde to shield themselves from the aggressive and malicious outside world

For the freaks, the writers use each episode to excavate the characters; the writers peel away of the layers of skin and protection that the characters have constructed (or inhabited?) in order to defend themselves against the cruelty of high school and the real world. For the geeks, each episode shows how these shields are in the process of being constructed. For the geeks, we witness a process of becoming, and for the freaks, we watch a process of deconstruction.

In both cases, we see how fragile egos are, how fluid identity formation is, and how painful it can be. The most brilliant episodes in the season are when the writers keep you guessing who's the hero and the anti-hero. I'm thinking particularly of an episode where, Daniel, played by James Franco is caught cheating for a math test in high school, and Lindsey, the main female lead played by Linda Cardellini, helps him cheat by feeding him the answers on a stolen test. In moments of brilliant acting, Franco is able to present his character as simultaneously manipulating Lindsey, the school system, and himself. You never know whose side to take.

At the heart of the show is a contest between an optimism and belief in the promise and the possibility of the American myth (as long as you try hard enough, you can be successful, beautiful, popular, well-liked, etc!), and a pessimism that the cards and the system are stacked against you, that people are lost and entrapped in the system. Like the best in American television -- the Wire, Mad Men -- Freaks and Geeks places these two poles in constant tension, never giving easy answers, showing us both the seductive and soul-crushing qualities of the American dream. But what is perhaps most compelling about Freaks and Geeks is that it shows so heartbreakingly the moments when a adolescents and young adult come to realize that perhaps their future is not limitless. "Dad, I really think that I can make it as a drummer." Nick, played by Jason Segel, says after his father threatens to send him to the Army if he can't keep a C+ average. "Nick, I really thought that I could walk on the moon, but, you just don't see any moon rocks around here, do ya?"